A Hollywood doctor known for his appearances on reality TV shows The Biggest Loser and Extreme Makeover has been criticized by scientists for giving nine Covid-19 patients a cocktail of unproven supplements to treat the illness, without obtaining institutional approval to carry out his research.

Dr. Robert Huizenga, or “Dr. H”, is known for being Charlie Sheen’s physician, and is based in Beverly Hills, California. In August, he published a “pre-print” — meaning as yet not peer reviewed — case series online, in which he described treating nine Covid-19 patients with a mixture combining a supplement called nicotinamide mononucleotide, along with other ingredients including zinc and salt. 

A group of scientists criticized Huizenga’ claims, describing them as “magical” and called him out for publishing the study without disclosing a potential conflict of interest: namely, that the treatment had been created by his brother, an inventor and entrepreneur named Joel Huizenga.

Joel Huizenga’s product claims to be an “age-reversal” treatment. Named “EGA” – “age” spelled backwards – it has not been through a clinical trial. Prior to the pandemic, the only research undertaken for “EGA” was an observational study involving a group of 12 friends who paid to take part in the study under the care of their own physician and reported feeling mentally and physically better after taking the treatment. The product is not for sale, but the EGA website invites people to pay to participate in an ongoing study. Participants are asked to pay $461 for their own diagnostic testing, and an undisclosed amount for the supplement itself.